Kamloops Amateur Radio Club
The Kamloops Amateur Radio Club is a non-profit organization incorporated under the Society Act and has been in operation since 1971..
Our goal is to establish, maintain, conduct, and promote among the members of the KARC and with others an interest in Amateur Radio and electronics. We strive to bring together people interested in Amateur Radio and electronics for their mutual enjoyment, and to further the knowledge and education of club members and the community at large.
Our club serves the communities of Kamloops, Merritt, and Logan Lake, and we are proud to have members from all over the TNRD and beyond.
For many years our organization has built and maintained a network of Amateur Radio mountain top repeaters which enable voice and digital communications between a number of interior communities. A major factor in the establishment of our system has been to have in place a wide ranging Amateur Radio Repeater and Broadband Network in the event of a provincial or local emergency. Our system is open for use by any visiting licensed amateur operators to our area and is also utilized when amateur radio operators assist the public for various reasons, i.e.: stranded motorists, finding lost hikers, vehicle accidents, reporting wildfires, etc. We also work closely with Emergency Management BC during disasters and training exercises.
We have repeaters on Greenstone Mountain, Mt. Lolo, Mt. Dufferin, and South Forge Mountain providing broad coverage to Kamloops, Logan Lake, Merritt, Ashcroft and the Trans-Canada Highway #1 as far south as Lytton and the Yellowhead Highway #5 as far north as Barriere. These repeaters are linked by an amateur radio broadband network which allows members to communicate with others regionally, provincially, nationally, and internationally. For the most part, the cost of establishing and maintaining this system has been born by the donations of time and equipment from individual Amateur Radio Operators and other Amateur Radio Clubs.
The club participates actively in the annual ARRL Field Day event, in the RAC Canada Day Contest, we hold an annual Christmas Party, and also host spring/summer picnics and provide tours of our mountain top repeater sites during the summer. The club also hosts a weekly breakfast every Saturday at 9am at Kirsten’s Hideout Cafe.
The club meets on the first Thursday of every month (except July and August) at 7:30pm. All guests are more than welcome, you don’t need to be a member to join the club meetings.”
